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Homosexual Law Reform Retrospective: Personal Points of View:
Necessary but Not the Answer
By Carol Thomson.
Ten years ago I came to one of many crossroads in my life. I left my husband, shifted from Westport to Wellington, and came out. I didn’t come out until after the passage of the bill. My coming out had much to do with how I felt and what I thought might be right for me.
Like a lot of emancipatory legislation this Act might have entrenched my legal rights but it didn’t make it any easier for me in the community. I have had many jobs where, although I thought it was wrong not to come out, I have remained in the closet. I have avoided talk about what I did on the weekend, and fretted about what personal details I should tell people. Sometimes I am still scared that people will judge me for what they think I am, rather than finding out who I am. This is a part of my life that I am always aware of. I always consider how much of it I am going to tell people.
I am a socialist, and this may be part of the reason why I don’t think that this legislation has had much of an effect on my life. I recognise that legislation which entrenches rights for oppressed groups is progressive; and for this reason I think law reform was necessary, but I don’t think it is the answer.
I am a revolutionary, and, although it is difficult to be a
revolutionary in the 90s, I believe that it is the only solution to
overcoming oppression.
Carol Thomson
Carol Thomson is 33 years old, part Maori, and lives in Auckland with her dog Tika.
[Reproduced from Issue No. 10 (June 1996) Friends of LAGANZ.]
Last updated: 2/11/2002
Kawe Mahara Queer Archives Aotearoa formerly Lesbian and Gay Archives of New Zealand Te Pūranga Takatāpui o Aotearoa (LAGANZ)
Alexander Turnbull Library, 70 Molesworth St, Wellington 6011
NEW ZEALAND
Curator Tel: +64 4 462 3972 |
Trust Secretary Mob: +64 27 444 3961
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